Straight Talk in a Crooked World

D-Mannose in the House!

Have you ever had a urinary tract infection? It is misery with a heap of discomfort. They usually begin with a strong urge to urinate that becomes worse and worse, and if they progress, they can become very painful. At that point you may be urinating blood and having abdominal pain.

One of the worst parts of them, though, may not be the physical symptoms themselves, but the prolonging of physical symptoms by having to wait until you can get to the doctor. By the time you get there they basically confirm what you already know and give you a prescription. Then you have to wait to have the prescription filled. This conventional method means hours and even days can go by before you get relief.

Sometimes people suffering from UTIs scour the Internet for home remedies to lessen their pain. Canned asparagus juice, cranberry juice, baking soda, and apple cider vinegar are among the popular fixes for UTIs, but they don’t work for everyone and may not solve the problem completely. Plus, cranberry juice can raise your blood sugar dramatically, and consuming things you don’t normally eat can make you nauseous.

D-mannose to the rescue! No, this isn’t a new rap star, it’s actually a simple sugar. It’s something you’re more likely to hear about at a reputable vitamin store than from a doctor. Yet it is a tremendously effective way to lessen the symptoms of a UTI or get rid of it altogether.

Many UTIs are caused by the type of E. coli that’s usually present inside of you, but not in your bladder or urethra. D-mannose grabs those little buggers and flushes them out. It’s so simple, and as far as I know you can’t build resistance to D-mannose like you can with repeated antibiotic use. You can buy it off the shelf rather than waiting in line for it as you do the cross-legged wiggle dance of agony.

Sometimes what you think is a UTI can actually be something much more serious and even life-threatening like a kidney stone. So D-mannose is not a substitute for sound medical advice, but a possible alternative to various home remedies and torturous waits at the drug store. Some people take it as a preventative measure, such as women who have frequent UTIs due to sexual intercourse, or men who get UTIs when they’re dehydrated.

Whether or not you try it is up to you, and results are not guaranteed. But I must wonder why more doctors don’t tell their patients about this relatively low cost, easy to obtain solution. It doesn’t raise your blood sugar much or have any significant side effects that I’ve heard of. It is a “miracle” supplement for some men and women, though, and friendlier to the good bacteria in your gut than most antibiotics.